Presbycusis, or hearing loss associated with aging, is one of the most common and disabling conditions affecting the elderly. However, there is a paucity of research on the effect of this hearing impairment on the emotional and social functioning of the elderly. Virtually no research exists concerning psychosocial implications of hearing loss in relation to the black or minority aged. The purpose of this study is to explore the relative contributions of audiologic and other factors, including medical, socioeconomic, psychologic and combinations thereof, towards the determination of hearing handicap in the black elderly. One hundred hearing-impaired black adults, aged 65 and older, will be selected from the clinic population at Harlem Hospital. All subjects will receive a complete audiologic evaluation followed by a battery of speech discrimination measures under varied conditions. Self-assessed hearing handicap will be measured with the Hearing Handicap Scale (High et al., 1964) and the newly developed Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly (Ventry & Weinstein, 1982). Finally, the OARS Multidimensional Functional Assessment Questionnaire, developed at Duke University (1978) will be administered to all subjects to comprehensively assess individual functioning in several dimensions - social resources, economic resources, mental health, physical health, and activities of daily living. Since the presence of multiple problems is the rule rather than the exception for the elderly, a multidisciplinary approach may be key to the understanding and intervention of hearing handicap in the elderly. For the black elderly in particular, adjustment to hearing impairment may depend to a large extent on establishing adequate function in other areas. Knowledge of the correlates of hearing handicap will provide valuable insights into the factors determining this complex phenomenon.